The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards are officially over, and what a show it was. With the tightest set of nominees imaginable and a lineup of performers that were sure to make headlines, this year was no doubt going to be one for the books. Normally that kind of hype just ends up in disappointment, but I am happy to say that I am, personally, left feeling very satisfied.
As far as the performances go, this was really a year of good-to-great performances with nothing that was particularly bad, nor particularly amazing. The opening Aretha Franklin tribute, featuring Yolanda Adams, Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Hudson, Martina McBride and Florence Welch (of Florence + The Machine), was easily one of the best of the night. Hardly one of the showiest performances, this was all about these five women, their incredible voices, and paying tribute to the Queen of Soul. Needless to say, Ms. Aguilera more than redeemed herself from her Super Bowl blunder. Another noteworthy performance was Cee Lo Green’s puppet show extravaganza featuring Gwyneth Paltrow and Cee Lo in an outfit that would give Elton John a serious run for his money. On the rock side of things, Muse and Arcade Fire brought the house down with their respective performances, both of which were total show stoppers. It is also worth mentioning Eminem’s performance featuring Rihanna, (with Maroon 5’s Adam Levine on piano,) Skylar Grey, and Dr. Dre. This was musically one of the best moments of the entire night, showcasing how Em has really grown into an incredible musician.
Probably the most anticipated performance of the night was Lady Gaga and her new single “Born This Way.” While this was by no means a bad performance (in fact, it was quite good,) it was too similar to everything Gaga we’ve seen over the past two years, and it just read as kind of “same old, same old.” She looked great, sounded great, but certainly did nothing (other than a short, yet effective organ solo) to mix things up. Although I will say that “walking” the red carpet carried Cleopatra-style in an egg-like “incubation womb” has got to be the more creative entrance ever. The folk music medley was really great, as well, with Mumford & Sons and The Avett Brothers, but when Bob Dylan joined them, it was almost painful to hear his voice so scratchy and worn out. In addition, Justin Bieber’s slot, which featured Jaden Smith, was surprisingly quite good, although Usher kind of took over and did his own thing, which really stole the spotlight from Biebs.
It wouldn’t be the Grammys without a little help from some legends, and this year they brought out two biggies: Mick Jagger (in his first ever Grammy performance) and Barbra Streisand, both of whom had absolutely amazing performances and received the biggest reactions of the evening. The rest of the performances, including Katy Perry (who sang surprisingly well,) Rihanna featuring Drake, Miranda Lambert, Lady Antebellum, and a medley featuring B.o.B., Bruno Mars, and Janelle Monáe (the latter of whom was epically flawless) were all particularly good. It seemed that the focus of the night was more about the music than the theatrics, and it really paid off. This really was a celebration of music, and even acts that I had my doubts about really proved themselves.
The awards themselves, however, were a completely other ball game. The biggest winners of the night were without a doubt Lady Antebellum who walked away with both Record and Song of the Year for their hit “Need You Now.” This wasn’t particularly surprising, but winning both really was a huge accomplishment considering the competition. The other two major awards were total shocks, though. For Best New Artist, it was pretty much universally accepted that it would come down to Drake and Justin Bieber, and an upset would have been epic. Needless to say, this one was an upset, and epic it was. Jazz musician Esperanza Spalding walked away with this one, to the shock of pretty much everyone (especially Biebs who did not look too happy.) Despite being a surprise, Esperanza totally deserved this one, even if she isn’t as popular as her fellow nominees. It was great to see talent rewarded before popularity.
Another universally accepted prediction was that Eminem’s “Recovery” would hands down win Album of the Year. In fact, this one was so certain that there wasn’t even a close second in the running. However, once again everyone (including the band themselves) was totally shocked when Canadian rockers Arcade Fire took home the award for their album, “The Suburbs.”
In other categories, Lady Gaga, Jay-Z, and Eminem were big winners. It was particularly great to see the awards spread out the way they were. While Lady Antebellum were the big winners, everyone else seemed to get a slice of the Grammy pie, while many of the undeserving nominees did go home empty handed. Overall, this year’s show was one of the best in recent years, mainly because there’s nothing to complain about (unless you’re a Justin Bieber fan, of course.) Here’s to another great year of music!
